Maddie

I didn’t sleep at all. After finishing the conversation with Landon, I realized I had to get up in two hours because I wanted to check on Grace before heading to Val’s, and two hours of sleep would just make me groggy. So instead, I made soup for Grace, stopped by the pharmacy because I was sure she’d be out of medicine for her cold, and headed to her apartment building. The weird thing? I had so much energy, you’d think I slept a full eight hours and ingested caffeine pills upon waking up.

Maybe I was still high on my conversation with Landon. I was sure I’d crash eventually, but maybe sight of a certain Connor brother would be enough to fill me with this weird, giddy energy again.

My sister was awake when I arrived in her tiny apartment. Her roommate was away this week.

“What happened to your hair?” she shrieked instead of saying good morning. She was sitting cross-legged on her bed, leaning with her back on the headboard, heaps of used napkins surrounding her. Grace looked a lot like me, and people often mistook us for twins, even if she was seven years younger.

“Haircut disaster. Went to a new hairdresser because I desperately needed a trim.”

“I’d give you a better haircut blindfolded.”

“I know. How are you feeling?”

Her nose was red and puffy, as were her eyes.

“Not good. I’m going to the doctor today. You were right. I should have gone sooner.”

I pressed my lips together to keep from saying I told you so. There was a time for gloating my general older-sister wisdom, and this was not the time.

“I brought you chicken soup. I left it in the kitchen. Do you want me to bring you some?”

“Nah, I’ll eat later. Thank you, Maddie. You’re so good to me.”

I ruffled her hair and she pushed my hand away, pretending to be annoyed. I loved doting on her. Ever since I was tall enough to reach the stove, I cooked her favorites. Our parents were always gone, either performing or rehearsing. Growing up, I’d missed the warmth of a parent doting on me, and I hadn’t wanted Grace to feel the same way.

I couldn’t protect her from the instability of a musician’s income. She’d worn hand-me-downs from me her entire childhood, and there were Christmases when we couldn’t even splurge on a festive meal, but I was determined to compensate where I could.

“How was the Lucky Bar last night?” she asked.

I fidgeted in my spot at the end of the bed, weighing the pros and cons of telling her everything about the shift. I hadn’t told her about my attraction to Landon, but now I was bursting to share everything with her. So I sat at the edge of her bed and poured my heart out, describing every tiny detail about the dance, the walk home, the phone call.

“Wait, wait, wait a second. Which one’s Landon?”

“The one who lives in San Jose.”

She held up her finger as if telling me to wait, picked up her smartphone, and typed something in it.

“Holy guacamole on a spike! Landon is like... all my favorite movie stars combined. I mean, this is just a headshot, but I can’t imagine a man with his face not having a body to go with it.”

I grinned. “He’s hot. Saw him in jogging clothes a few times. Doesn’t leave anything to the imagination, trust me.”

Grace blew her nose loudly, then adopted a dreamy expression. “And he’s a good dancer, huh? You know what they say about good dancers.”

“Oh, I do.” I’d thought about it the entire night. The way his body moved... I imagined he’d be just as excellent in bed as he was on the dance floor. When he’d asked me if I was seeing someone, I thought he might flip me around and kiss me. But then I realized why he’d asked. He wouldn’t have danced that way with me if I were seeing someone else. In some ways, our dancing felt more intimate than kissing.

Grace tilted her head, studying me. “Something’s not right. You’re usually not this open about liking a guy. Not since—”

“Don’t say his name.”

“I was going to say He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. Since him, you’ve been more... guarded.”

I’d tried dating after Owen, but it didn’t amount to much. I shrugged, fiddling her bedsheet with my fingers. “I know, but Landon’s so out of my reach, it’s almost like crushing on a movie star. It’s safe, you know? Because it’s all in your imagination.”

“That dance was not in your imagination.”

“I know, but it was just a dance.”

I couldn’t explain to Grace the conundrum that was Landon, mainly because I didn’t understand him completely either. But even though he was fun, and even a little flirty, I could feel that emotional barrier he’d put in place. I wanted to reach out to him, break it down, but didn’t know how. Like I was an authority on breaking barriers or something. I had erected some walls of my own after Owen. I didn’t want to start unbricking my heart for anyone. But damn, I loved the way Landon smiled at me last night. I wanted to see him happy. Was that crazy?

“Do you want me to drive you to the doctor?” I asked.

“Nah, it’s okay. I can drive.”

“I should go. If I arrive early at Val’s, I’ll be done quicker, and then we can catch up this evening.”

“Take care.”

On the way to Val’s, I drank the entire coffee I bought at the Starbucks opposite Grace’s building, but I could feel the tiredness setting in already. And it was just eight in the morning. I had a silver lining, though. This was the time of day Landon went for his run, unless Lori was dropping Milo early for training. In any case, my chances of seeing him in workout gear were excellent.

I switched on the radio, hoping for some music beats to chase away my drowsiness. Three songs in and I was sleepy as hell. Then the stream of music was interrupted by the news bulletin.

“A storm will be rolling in from the coast today. We’re expecting heavy rain and the wind can reach up to one hundred miles an hour.”

Fantastic. I’d been listening to the weather report yesterday, and they’d said the storm would not reach LA. Just my luck. I groaned as traffic on La Cienega Boulevard slowed almost to a standstill. Not unusual, but not what I needed, especially with this news. It meant I had to shop for supplies to cover Val’s yard. Rain brought the risk of erosion when the terrain was a slope. I grabbed my phone and checked where the nearest shop was. Then I groaned again. I’d be a million years late to Val’s. I needed a semipermeable ground cover and spikes to fasten it. The reason I didn’t have them in my pack of supplies was that it rarely rained in summer. A storm on the last day of June was very unusual.

When I finally had the supplies, dark clouds had already rolled in and the wind was chilling. This storm was going to be a sucker, but between the boys and me, we’d manage to secure the entire front yard before the downpour began.

The space in front of Val’s gate was emptier than I’d expected it. Val was probably at the office, but when I’d left yesterday, Lori’s car was in the drive too. I remembered on the spot Milo telling me they were going to the festival on Venice Beach today, and they’d be leaving at eight. But then I realized what else was wrong with the picture in front of me. Only Jacob had arrived to work, and he wasn’t working. He was leaning against his car... waiting. A familiar dread knotted in my stomach. This was not happening. Not today, when there was a storm rolling in. I was instantly jolted awake. I climbed out of my car.

“Hey, Jacob! Where’s Sevi?”

He looked at me apologetically. Crap, crap, crap. I knew what was coming.

“Sorry, Maddie, we got an offer yesterday. Today’s the first day of work. Sevi’s already there. I just wanted to tell you in person.”

This was the part of my business I hated. People just up and leaving because a newer, bigger, better construction site needed workers. I was pissed to no end, but I fought to remain calm.

“Jacob, be reasonable. You can’t quit midproject. I pay you the market price.”

He shrugged. “This project’s bigger, Maddie. Will last until the end of the year.”

“Stay today, so we can secure the yard before the storm comes in.” I couldn’t keep my voice down any longer. It was the last day of June, and I’d already paid them for this month, so I didn’t have anything to hold over his head.

“Can’t, Maddie, I’m so sorry. We start today. I have to be there so they don’t give the job to someone else.”

He gave me another shrug, then climbed into his car and drove away. I wanted to scream, and kick, and maybe even cry a little. Why were people so undependable? There was no way I could find someone to help me secure the yard before the storm kicked in. With trembling hands, I pulled out my phone and started posting job offers in all the groups I knew. This would only get me temporary workers for next week, but they’d have to do until I found permanent replacements for Jacob and Sevi. There was a real possibility I’d complete this project late, and I hated that. I knew Val wouldn’t mind, but I liked keeping my word, meeting my deadlines. It was why I’d made it this far.

There was only one thing to do.

I had to kick ass, and pronto.